Addiction need not be a life sentence.
 

Does relapse to drug abuse mean treatment has failed?
No. The chronic nature of the disease means that relapsing to drug abuse is not only possible, but likely, with relapse rates similar to those for other well-characterized chronic medical illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, and asthma, which also have both physiological and behavioral components. Treatment of chronic diseases involves changing deeply embedded behaviors, and relapse does not mean treatment failure. For the addicted patient, lapses back to drug abuse indicate that treatment needs to be reinstated or adjusted, or that alternate treatment is needed.

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To continue reading this NIDA article (click here)

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Wow, this is very interesting. The consensus seems to be around a year. Only problem with "recovery" is that first year is hell.

Exactly, this is why I don't pay too much attention to the "success/failure" rates of programs. I meet people who relapsed after 15+ years of sobriety. Those 15 years still count. Just like chemotherapy for cancer. If chemo keeps someone cancer-free for 5 years, it's looked at as successful.